Chapter 116 Recovered

Chapter 116 Recovered

The drakes were faster than the helicopters, and both were rapidly fading into the distance as the clergy did their work, saving one attacker and most of their guards.

Then they waited. And waited some more until the special forces team gave up the chase and returned a half hour later.

From the look on their faces as they stepped out of the helicopter, it was not a triumphant return, and the Drake Riders had escaped their pursuit, but it was still good to see them.

"Priests, students, and who might these be?" The large man leading the Inquisition team asked.

"A gathering team from the Divine Golden Academy, led by the Awakened students Karl and Dana, here to gather herbs, sir." Karl replied, as he was the closest of their team members.

"Two Awakened Team Leaders for a resource gathering mission?" The Inquisitor asked.

"Yes, sir. We're all in our first year, so they sent an extra Awakened member on this Common Grade mission to make up for our inexperience." Karl explained.

That seemed to be enough to mollify the Inquisitor, who just nodded in satisfaction as he looked over the team.

"It looks like you're all the leaders of this year's class. Congratulations on your acceptance by the Divine Serum." The Inquisitor replied.

"The World Dragon smiles upon us." Karl agreed.

The two cleric students who had been with him nodded enthusiastically, and even the Inquisition smirked at that reverent response. The group had discovered two Dragon Priests, more correctly, a Priest and a Priestess, as the Inquisitors began to realize. If that wasn't proof of the World Dragon's favour, then he wasn't sure what qualified.

"We will need to extract the entire team at this time. Notification has been sent to the Divine Golden Academy, and they will come to recover their students once we have had an opportunity to speak." The Inquisition team leader announced with a gesture toward the helicopter.

The clerics looked nervous, which made everyone else nervous as well. What did they know that nobody else did? The team hadn't done anything wrong, so surely there was no need to be frightened, Karl thought as he called Hawk and Rae back into their space for the trip. New n0vel chapters are published on

Both had stolen Drake bodies for later, which someone would certainly notice, as the scales were incredibly valuable, but that could be discussed once they got back to the Academy, as they could also be counted as a strengthening resource.

Many scaled beasts used potions with the scales of Dragon type beasts to help their growth, and Karl had Thor, who might be able to get something from the exchange.

"Can you show me the marks?" The leader of the rescue team asked, looking at the two newly awakened Clerics directly.

They both pulled up their sleeves and the man smiled, then gestured toward the helicopter. "Everyone in. We've waited here long enough."

The students looked nervous as Karl was led into the other room, where two large men, shirtless in black leather pants, were standing on either side of a metal chair with arm rests.

Karl wasn't an idiot, he knew that this was an interrogation room, not a 'friendly meeting with new friends' room, but as long as he explained clearly, he didn't see any reason for there to be a problem.

Most of the intimidation of the room came from the knowledge that you had something to hide, and Karl really didn't have many secrets. At least, he assumed that was why it was supposed to be horrifying, as the room was immaculately clean with no signs of prior use, other than the scuff marks on the floor by the chair.

The man who escorted him in gave Karl a friendly smile as he settled into a folding chair facing the metal one Karl was led to.

"Alright, let's start at the beginning. I mean the very beginning. Who are you, where are you from, and what was your life like before you found out that you were compatible with the Divine Serum?" The inquisitor began.

"Well, my name is Karl. The working people of the mines don't customarily give family names. I am in the first year at the Academy now, from the most recent batch of Serum candidates.

I was going to school on the standard four-day schedule and working six quarter shifts in the mine a week, as the rules allow for students.

I can't say things were all that bad, my mother was a good cook, and my parents hadn't run up any debts that I know of." Karl began, then paused, unsure what else the man might want.

The inquisitor nodded. "You don't hold any resentment against the mine owner?"

Karl shook his head. "I've never even met the man. Or perhaps it's a woman? The foreman is a good guy, though. His daughter was in my class, but she didn't have the compatibility."

"How has your time at the Golden Divine Academy been? Are you making friends?"

Karl smiled. "Very much so. I've been advancing faster than most, so I keep getting moved between training programs, and everywhere I go I meet more good people."

"Why do you think that is?" The Inquisitor asked, taking notes on a paper pad.

"I have a theory that everyone who gains the favour of the World Dragon has something in common. Have you noticed that there are suspiciously few douchebags in the first year classes? Maybe not. I don't know if you were a student. But the truly cruel and the bullies don't seem to have made the cut." Karl explained.

The Inquisitor looked like he was about to laugh at Karl's seemingly naive response, but as he thought about it, it was true of the first years. They came in decent, and only really devolved as the year went on, and the power differences began to appear, which caused resentment, bitterness and envy.

By the second year, the cliques had fully formed, but at the start of the first year, as Karl was experiencing, his classmates would all still be somewhat starstruck and hopeful.

"Now, I need every single detail of your mission. The wording, everyone involved in its assignment, and anything else you can think of." The Inquisitor demanded, turning serious, but softening his voice enough that it didn't sound like a threat.